Vehicle air bag minimum distance enforcement apparatus, method and system

ABSTRACT

A vehicle safety device comprises a seat mounted within a passenger compartment of the vehicle, wherein the seat is movably connected to a vehicle frame by a seat position adjusting mechanism which allows the seat to move along an axis between a forward-most position and a rearward-most position. An air-bag is mounted within the passenger compartment in front of the forward-most position of the seat, with the forward-most position of the seat defined as a position of the seat in which a distance between a passenger seated in the seat and the air-bag is equal to a minimum safe clearance. In addition, a method of maintaining a minimum safe clearance between an air-bag mounted in a vehicle and a vehicle passenger includes the steps of preventing motion of a seat toward the air-bag beyond a forward-most position wherein, when in the forward-most position, a passenger seated in the seat is separated from the air-bag by a predetermined minimum safe clearance and providing a position adjusting mechanism for at least one vehicle control pedal to allow a passenger seated in the seat to adjust a distance between the seat and the at least one pedal by moving the at least one pedal toward and away from the seat. The invention also contemplates an automatic seat positioning system which takes into account both seat to air-bag distance and eye height and automatically, optimally positions a passenger to better insure safety and comfort.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.60/101,487, filed Sep. 23, 1998; U.S. Provisional Application No.60/105,245, filed Oct. 22, 1998 and U.S. Provisional Application No.60/105,595, filed Oct. 26, 1998.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to safety systems and methods for vehiclesand more particularly relates to vehicle air-bag systems which, inoperation, take into account a clearance between a vehicle passenger andan air-bag.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Although statistics indicate that vehicles equipped with air-bags haveenhanced passenger safety, under certain conditions air-bags have beenidentified as the primary source of passenger injuries and have evenbeen cited in several cases as causing death. Deaths have been directlyattributed to air-bags predominantly in low-speed accidents. However,despite the difficulty in nailing down a single cause of death inhigh-speed accidents, it is likely that air-bags have also played asignificant role in deaths resulting from high-speed accidents.

A large number of these injuries have involved shorter drivers—morespecifically, drivers 5′ 0″ or less in height—who adjust the seatposition so that a distance between the air-bag and the driver arereduced below a safe clearance. Of course, it should be understood thatdrivers taller than 5′0″ may also position themselves within the minimumsafe clearance and this positioning is dangerous regardless of theheight of the driver. In known systems, as all of the adjustment fordrivers of various sizes is generally done through seat movement,shorter drivers are often positioned much closer to the steering wheel(and the air-bag contained therein) than are taller drivers. Asindicated above, this often results in shorter drivers (e.g., 5′ 0″ orless in height), along with taller drivers who chose to sit close to thesteering wheel, being positioned within a predetermined safe clearance.Depending on the air-bag system used, the safe clearance may vary.However, a 10″ clearance between the driver and the air-bag is usuallysufficient to eliminate the negative effects of air-bag systems.

Conventional seats generally allow adjustment of the driver's seatbetween a rearward-most position and a forward-most position separatedby a distance sufficient to accommodate the range of leg lengths in theadult population, e.g., approximately 8″. These systems primarilyaddress differences in leg length as differences in arm and torso lengthamong the population are less substantial.

Thus, in order to operate the pedals in prior systems, shorter adultswere forced to move the seat forward, often to the forward-most positionwhile a portion of taller adults also chose to move the seat beyond thesafe clearance. This causes a corresponding distance closure between thedrivers chest and head and the steering wheel in which the air-bag isoften located. Thus, when the seat is in the forward-most position, adriver will be separated from the steering wheel by a distance less thanthe required minimum safe clearance.

This problem has been addressed by systems which determine when thedriver is positioned closer than the minimum safe clearance and thenadjust or suspend air-bag operation. In addition to disabling air-bagswhen the clearance is unsafe, prior systems have slowed the rate ofair-bag inflation or inflated the air-bag in stages. However, thesesystems may deprive shorter drivers of the full effectiveness of theair-bag system.

Other areas of concern are in the appropriate use of reduced inflationbags and in post-crash escape and rescue actions. Seat belts, automaticdoor locks and electric windows often become liabilities followingsevere impact, rollover, or in submerged vehicle situations.

However, little attention has been paid to computerized safetyautomation and post-crash escape as they relate to these features.Rather, industry efforts have been directed to manual devices such asthe “Pointed Window Breaking Hammer” now offered as a car safetyaccessory to expedite escape.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a vehicle safety device comprisinga seat mounted within a passenger compartment of the vehicle, whereinthe seat is movably connected to a vehicle frame by a seat positionadjusting mechanism which allows the seat to move along an axis betweena forward-most position and a rearward-most position. An air-bag ismounted within the passenger compartment in front of the forward-mostposition of the seat, with the forward-most position of the seat definedas a position of the seat in which a distance between a passenger seatedin the seat and the air-bag is equal to a minimum safe clearance.

The present invention is also directed to a method of maintaining aminimum safe clearance between an air-bag mounted in a vehicle and avehicle passenger including the steps of preventing motion of a seattoward the air-bag beyond a forward-most position wherein, when in theforward-most position, a passenger seated in the seat is separated fromthe air-bag by a predetermined minimum safe clearance and providing aposition adjusting mechanism for at least one vehicle control pedal toallow a passenger seated in the seat to adjust a distance between theseat and the at least one pedal by moving the at least one pedal towardand away from the seat.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A shows a driver side view of a passenger compartment of a vehicleequipped with a vehicle safety system according to a first embodiment ofthe invention;

FIG. 1B shows a passenger side view of a passenger compartment of avehicle equipped with a vehicle safety system according to a firstembodiment of the inventions.

FIG. 2 shows a partially cross-sectional side view of a first pedalposition adjustment apparatus for use with the first embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 3 shows a partially cross-sectional side view of a second pedalposition adjustment apparatus for use with the first embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 4 shows a partially cross-sectional front view of the pedalposition adjustment apparatus of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 shows a partially cross-sectional side view of a third pedalposition adjustment apparatus for use with the first embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 6 shows a plan diagram of a computer controlled vehicle safetysystem according to the present invention;

FIG. 7A shows a partially cross-sectional side view of a fourth pedalposition adjustment apparatus for use with the first embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 7B shows a partially cross-sectional side view of another exemplaryfourth pedal position adjustment apparatus for use with the firstembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 8 shows a cross-sectional view of the pedal position adjustmentmechanism of FIG. 7A and/or FIG. 7B taken on a plane perpendicular tothat of FIG. 7A and/or FIG. 7B.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1A shows a system according to the present invention in which adriver positioned on a seat 2 adjusts the position of the seat 2 to adesired position between rearward and forward-most positions separatedby a distance X. Then, the driver adjusts the position of the pedals 4so that, when in the desired seat position, the driver can comfortablyreach the pedals 4 (accelerator, brake, clutch, etc.). Those skilled inthe art will understand that any known manual or automatic seatpositioning mechanism may be employed in a vehicle safety deviceaccording to the invention. For example, as is known in the art, a seatposition adjusting mechanism may include a lever 11 which, in a firstposition, prevents the seat 2 from moving forward and rearward andwhich, in a second position, releases the seat 2 so that the seat 2 maybe moved forward and rearward by a passenger seated in the seat 2.

A vehicle safety system according to the present invention limits themotion of the seat 2 toward the steering wheel 6 or other point ofdeployment of an air-bag 8 so that a distance A between the driver andthe air-bag 8 is at least a minimum safe clearance. Thereafter, theremainder of any further reduction of the distance between the driverand the pedals 4 is achieved by a rearward adjustment of the position ofthe foot pedals 4.

By providing limited adjustment of the position of the seat 2, driversmay still adjust for the relatively smaller variations in chest depthand arm length while the adjustment of the position of the pedals 4allows for the larger adjustments necessary to accommodate differencesin leg length.

The minimum safe clearance may be maintained by limiting seat backmotion toward the steering wheel 6 center to a distance equal to theminimum safe clearance plus a value for a minimum adult chest depth(e.g., approximately 8″). Thus, for a 10″ minimum safe clearance andusing 8″ for the minimum adult chest depth, the seat 2 would beprevented from moving forward past a point where the seat back is 18″from the steering wheel 6. In such a system, as pedal positionadjustment allows for the greater difference in leg length, a distancebetween the forward-most and rearward-most positions of the seat,allowing only for the lesser differences between chest depth and armlength, could be reduced to approximately 2½″. Then, providing 6″ ofadjustment between forward-most and rearward-most positions of the footpedals 4 makes available to the driver of such a vehicle an amount oftotal adjustment of the distance between the driver and the pedals 4comparable to that provided in previous systems. Those skilled in theart will understand that, although distances between the driver and thesteering wheel 6 are being discussed as examples, the only distance thatmatters is that between an occupant of the vehicle (driver or passenger)and the air-bag cover, which is a distance A from the steering wheellocated airbag for the driver of FIG. 1A and which is a distance A′ fromthe dashboard located airbag for the passenger of FIG. 1B.

FIG. 2 shows a manual system for pedal position adjustment whichoperates similarly to the mechanisms in use for manual adjustment ofseat position. When a lever 12 is moved into a release position, a pedalslide mechanism 14 coupled between the frame of the vehicle 1 and thepedals 4 is released into an unlocked configuration in which a pedalslide housing 18 and, consequently, the pedals 4 may be slid forward andrearward relative to the vehicle dashboard 16 (FIG. 1) to a desiredposition. When the lever 12 is moved from the release position to alocked position, the pedal slide housing 18 is locked into the desiredposition. Of course, the lever 12 may be biased toward the lockedposition, e.g., by a spring, so that the lever 12 automatically returnsto the locked position when released. Those skilled in the art willrealize that, if desired, individual pedals 4 may be mounted to separatepedal slide mechanisms 14 thereby allowing each pedal 4 to be adjustedto an optimum position. Alternatively, the pedals 4 may be coupledtogether for motion forward and rearward in unison so that apredetermined relative positioning of the pedals 4 is maintained.

The pedal 4 of FIG. 2 is pivotally coupled to a slide housing 18 forrotation about an axle 20 with an upper extension 24 of the pedal bar22. The upper extension 24 abuts a first pin 26 which is slidablyreceived in a channel 28 formed in the slide housing 18 and a firstpulley 30 is pivotally mounted on the first pin 26. A second pulley 32is pivotally mounted on a second pin 34 which is fixedly coupled to theslide housing 18 and a cable 36 extends from an anchor 38, around thefirst and second pulleys 30, 32, through a firewall 40 via a conduit 41to an actuator 98 a which operates a vehicle control device 99, e.g.,clutch, brake or accelerator.

The letter P in FIG. 2 indicates the position of the pedal 4 in apressed position while the letter U indicates the position of the pedal4 in an unpressed position. When in the unpressed position U, the upperextension 24 extends substantially vertically so that the first pin 26and the first pulley 30 are positioned at the front of the channel 28 asthe pedal 4 is biased into the unpressed position U by, for example, aspring or other known mechanism. In the unpressed position U with thefirst pulley 30 at the front of the channel 28, a portion of the cable36 extending between the anchor 38 and the first pulley 30 is at aminimum length thereby operating the actuator into a configurationcorresponding to the unpressed condition of the pedal 4. When the pedal4 is depressed to the pressed position P, the upper extension 24 rotates(clockwise as seen in FIG. 2) to the position indicated by the dashedline pushing the first pin 26 and the first pulley 30 rearward in thechannel 28 and increasing the length of the portion of the cable 36which extends between the first pulley 30 and the anchor 38. This drawsthe actuator into a configuration corresponding to the pressed positionP of the pedal 4.

The slide housing 18 is slidably mounted to a channel member 42 which isrigidly coupled to a lower surface of the dashboard 16 or bracketed tothe firewall 40 for motion between forward-most and rearward-most pedalpositions separated by a distance B. Those skilled in the art willunderstand that regardless of the position of the slide housing 18 alongthe channel member 42, the total cable length from the firewall 40 toanchor 38 remains constant and, therefore, the action of the cable 36 onthe actuator will be unchanged by an adjustment of the position of theslide housing 18. Thus, the position of the pedal 4 may be adjustedforward and rearward without affecting the operation of the actuator orthe corresponding vehicle control device.

FIG. 3 shows an adjustable pedal position mechanism substantiallysimilar to that of FIG. 2 except that the slide housing 18 extendsfurther vertically with the first pulley 30 arranged below the secondpulley 32 as opposed to the lateral arrangement depicted in FIG. 2 and,in addition, FIG. 3 shows a mechanism for locking the pedal slidemechanism 14 in a desired position. In addition, FIG. 3 shows anexemplary mechanism for locking the slide housing 18 and, consequently,the pedal 4 in a desired position along the channel member 42. Thelocking mechanism includes a ridged plate 44 biased toward an uppersurface of the slide housing 18 by springs 46. The ridged plate 44includes a plurality of projections 48 sized to be received in recesses50 formed in an upper surface of the slide housing 18. The ridged plate44 is coupled to the lever 12 so that, when the lever 12 is pulledupward, the ridged plate 44 is disengaged from the slide housing 18 andthe slide housing 18 may be freely slid forwardly and rearwardly alongthe channel 42. Then, when the lever 12 is released after adjusting thepedal 4 to the desired position, springs 46 move the ridged plate 44down into engagement with the recesses 50 of the slide housing 18 tomaintain the slide housing 18 in the desired position. Those skilled inthe art will understand that the above-described locking mechanism isexemplary only and that any number of known mechanisms may be used tolock the channel in the desired position.

FIG. 4 shows a partially cross-sectional front view of the adjustablepedal position mechanism of FIG. 3 showing two pedals 4 mounted to slidehousings 18 which are rigidly coupled to one another via a connectingmember 52 so that the position of both pedals 4 relative to one anotheris maintained constant as the adjustable pedal position mechanism isoperated to achieve a desired pedal position. As indicated by the thirdpedal 4 shown in dotted lines in FIG. 4, those skilled in the art willrecognize that any number of pedals may be interlinked for commonforward and rearward motion with this mechanism. In the alternative,additional pedals may be de-linked from the first two pedals to allowindependent positioning thereof. In addition, those skilled in the artwill understand that one or more slide housings 18 may be formed as asingle one-piece unit together with the corresponding connecting members52 so that the unit as a whole moves along the channel 42.

FIG. 5 shows an alternative embodiment of the adjustable pedal positionmechanism of FIG. 2 which incorporates structure essentially identicalto that of FIG. 2 except that the cable 36 is coupled at one end to theanchor 38 while the other end of the cable 36 is coupled to a lever 54which is pivotally coupled to the fire wall 40 via a mount 56. The lever54 is positioned adjacent a member 58 which, when depressed, may operatean electric switch sending a signal corresponding to a degree ofdepression of the pedal 4 to the vehicle control device via the actutaor98 a which actuates a vehicle control device as is known in the art. Inaddition, the adjustable pedal position mechanism of FIG. 5 is coupled,for example via a worm gear (not shown) to a servo motor 62 forautomatically adjusting the position of the pedal 4. Specifically, theservo motor 62 operates based on input from the driver to move the pedal4 forward or rearward to the desired position and to lock the pedal 4 inthe desired position. Alternatively, the servo motor may be operatedbased on memory stored in a CPU of a vehicle control system to select apredetermined pedal position (or pedal and seat position) based onpredetermined preferences for the current driver. Of course, for suchsystems with the pedal position adjusted in accord with commands from aCPU, the seat position and pedal position may be automaticallycontrolled in accord with criteria stored in a memory to ensure that theminimum safe clearance is maintained.

Those skilled in the art will understand that, as a substitute for theservo motor 62 of FIG. 5, any suitable automatically operable powersource may be employed to automatically adjust the position of thepedals 4 employing any number of suitable mechanisms such as thoseemployed, for example, with powered seats.

As shown in FIG. 6, an adjustable pedal position mechanism as in FIG. 5,may be integrated into a computerized vehicle safety system operated bya CPU 64 which may be part of an on-board microprocessor controllingvarious vehicle functions.

The CPU 64 is coupled to a multiplicity of vehicle control devicesincluding, for example, a clutch control 66, a brake control 68, athrottle control 70, operating condition sensors including, for example,speed and direction sensors 72 and exterior distance sensors 74. Inaddition, the CPU 64 is coupled to vehicle safety components including,for example, driver notification devices 76; crash sensitive in-cardevice controls 78 which may, for example, control door and seat beltunlocking, window opening, motor shut-off, placement of 911 calls; andan air-bag inflation control system 80; and sensors supplyinginformation to the vehicle safety system including, for example, a childseat detector 82, a seat occupied sensor 84, a seat belt in use sensor86, driver/passenger distance and elevation sensors 88, 98, seatposition sensors 90 and submerged vehicle condition sensors 92. Theoccurrence of a crash may be detected, for example, by the accelerationor other sensors used to activate the air-bags, roll-over sensors, etc.

An alternative pedal position adjustment mechanism of FIG. 6 issubstantially identical to the pedal position adjustment apparatusdescribed in the previous embodiments except that instead of the cablecoupled to an actuator via a first fixed pulley and a second movablepulley, a sensor 94 detects a degree of rotation of each of the pedals 4about the axle 20. Each sensor 94 supplies an output signalcorresponding to the angular position of the corresponding pedal 4 tothe CPU 64 which supplies a corresponding control signal to a vehiclecontrol device corresponding to the particular pedal 4.

The computerized vehicle safety system of FIG. 6 may allow adjustment ofboth seat and pedal position through operation of a single switch 95corresponding to currently employed seat position switches, but may bepre-programmed to prevent the driver from adjusting the seat to aposition within the minimum safe clearance. As the driver operates theswitch 95 to request a forward motion of the seat 2, the CPU 64 operatesa servo motor to direct a forward motion of the seat 2 until the driverreaches the minimum safe clearance (as determined by either a driverposition sensor or a pre-set forward-most seat position). The CPU 64then halts the forward motion of the seat 2 locking the seat 2 in theforward-most position and begins moving the pedals 4 toward the driveruntil the driver indicates that a desired position of the pedals 4 hasbeen achieved. The CPU 64 then directs the adjustable pedal positionmechanism to lock the pedals 4 in the desired position. Alternatively,the system of FIG. 6 may also include a separate pedal position switch97 allowing the passenger to adjust the position of the pedals 4regardless of the current position of the seat 2.

As indicated above, a preferred embodiment of the invention may employ,as an alternative to a predetermined forward-most seat position based ona minimum adult chest depth, an electronic passenger distance sensor 88to monitor, e.g., chest to air-bag distance. The CPU 64 then monitorsthe chest to air-bag distance and controls motion of the seat 2 and thepedals 4 to maintain the minimum safe clearance. Upon detecting theminimum safe distance has been achieved, forward seat motion is haltedand all further motion request of the driver is transferred to the servomotor 62. In addition, although the seat is prevented from movingforward beyond the minimum safe clearance, if a driver or passengermoves his body relative to the seat to temporarily encroach beyond theminimum safe clearance, the CPU 64 may control the air-bag inflationcontrol 80 to cause it to operate in a reduced clearance mode in which,under predetermined conditions, the system may, for example, reduce aninflation pressure, disable the air-bag or deploy the air-bag in stagedinflation until the driver or passenger returns beyond the minimum safeclearance. When the driver has returned beyond the minimum safeclearance, the system discontinues the reduced clearance mode operation.

Upon an adjustment for rear movement of the seat 2 being called for, theCPU 64 directs operation in reverse of that employed for forward motionof the seat 2. That is, when the servo motor 62 is operated to retractthe pedals 4 (toward the front of the vehicle), until the forward-mostposition of the pedals 4 is reached. Then CPU 64 directs additionaldistance adjustments by moving the seat 2 rearward.

An optional front limit button 96 permits a driver to select as apersonal forward-most position, any position of the seat 2 in which thepassenger seated therein is separated from the air-bag by at least theminimum safe clearance and to make adjustments for leg length by movingthe pedals 4 rearward. This allows drivers of all sizes to takeadvantage of a more rearward pedal position thereby reducing thepossibility of lower limb injury.

The present design of “seat slide only” adjustment has also resulted invisual limitations to drivers of small stature as shorter driversstretch to reach the pedals 4. This need to stretch in turn limits theamount of seat elevation that can be physically utilized.

However, rearward adjustment of the position of the pedals 4 offered bythe present invention eliminates such stretching, and allows a fullrange of seat elevation to be employed by all drivers regardless ofheight, permitting all to obtain optimum design eye level.

An elevation sensor 98 may be coupled to the CPU 64 positioned withinthe passenger compartment to detect an actual height of a driver's head.As is known to those skilled in the art, the elevation sensor 98 mayemploy technology such as ultrasonic sensors similar to sensors includedin commercially available distance meters. Using a standard valuerepresenting an average difference between a height of the top of aperson's head and their eyes, (e.g., 4″) an optimum eye elevationposition may be automatically obtained. As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, adistance NN1 from the sensor 98 (roof position) to a point correspondingto 4 inches below a top of the head is believed to correspond to anoptimal or at least a good distance NN2 of the sensor 98 with respect tothe top of the head as the CPU 64 directs an electric motor (not shown)in the seat 2 to elevate the seat 2 until the elevation sensor 98indicates that the optimum eye level has been obtained.

Thus, the present invention provides an automatic driver seatpositioning system (DPS), which utilizes both front and elevationsensors to automatically position the driver in an optimum visual andair bag protection position.

Those skilled in the art will understand that, although the describedembodiments show overhead or dashboard slung foot pedals and a pedalposition adjustment mechanism adapted thereto, the invention may also beapplied in vehicles with floor mounted pedals or other pedal mountingarrangements, so long as a combination of pedal movement and seatmovement is provided to ensure that a minimum safe clearance between thedriver or other passenger and an air-bag is maintained. In addition,though the described embodiments and examples refer to driver seatcontrol and a steering wheel located air-bag, the same concepts may beapplied to other passenger seating and air-bag arrangements to maintaina minimum safe clearance between the passenger and the air-bag.

Of course, as indicated in FIG. 6, the CPU 64 may preferably be coupledto a plurality of vehicle systems to create an integrated vehicle safetysystem. Specifically, in addition to controlling the air-bag system andthe seat and pedals to maintain a minimum safe clearance, the system ofFIG. 6 may include, for example, sensors for determining whether a childseat is mounted on a particular seat, whether a particular seat belt isin use, the position of the seats, whether a vehicle is submerged or inanother post-crash situation and systems for disabling the ignition ofthe vehicle after an accident, for automatically lowering the windows ina submerged vehicle situation, for unlocking the doors and unfasteningthe seat belts after an accident and for operating a cell phone and/ornavigation system to make a call to 911.

The driver/passenger distance sensors 88 offer a practical method ofcontrolling the inflation of multi stage and/or controlled inflationair-bags, when so equipped. E.g., when the distance sensor 88 indicatesthat the minimum safe distance has been encroached upon, thecorresponding air-bag would be activated at a reduced inflation rate.Optimum Air Bag inflation activation and rate may be continuouslycomputed by the CPU 64 based upon input from sensors 72, 74, 82, 84, 86and 88.

For example, encroachment beyond the minimum safe clearance, or thedetection of a low speed impact, based upon exterior distance sensors 74and vehicle speed, would initiate a lower inflation setting for therelated air-bag. Thus, the system is further enhanced by interfacingwith other systems that detect seat occupancy and/or active seat beltuse, providing a continuous basis of multi-factor safe inflationevaluation.

Present foot pedal designs vary considerably by auto manufacturer, butgenerally utilize either cable or rod control of gas, brake and clutch.In the preferred embodiment all foot pedals are mounted on a singlesliding platform located under dash, supported from the firewall and/ordash, and activated by either manual or motorized control as describedabove.

Combined with motorized control, the vehicle safety system of FIG. 6 mayemploy the sensors 98 and 88 to provide automatic, optimized driverpositioning, regardless of weight or height.

This customized driver positioning system may be implemented by the CPU64 by, for example, activating seat/pedal position control in thefollowing 3 steps:

#1—The seat 2 is first returned to its lowest and rearward-mostposition;

#2—After step 1 has been achieved, the seat 2 is then elevated to itsoptimum eye level position, i.e., the point at which the distanceindicated by elevation sensor 98 equals an optimum distance stored inmemory;

#3—After steps 1 and step 2 have been completed, the seat 2 is advancedto its minimum safe position, the point at which the distance indicatedby the distance sensor 88 is equal to a predetermined minimum safedistance stored in memory or, alternatively, by advancing the seat 2 toa preselected forward-most position.

Those skilled in the art will understand that, these steps may beperformed in any order. However, adjusting the eye height firsteliminates inaccuracies in detection of the distance between thepassenger and the air-bag that may result from the varying contour ofthe passenger (i.e., some portions of the passengers anatomy may projectfurther forward than others). Thus if horizontal positioning isperformed first, a later change in vertical position may alter thecritical distance between the sensed portion of the passenger and theair-bag.

The driver would then adjust the pedals 4 to the most comfortableposition by further activation of the seat position activator.

FIGS. 7A, 7B and 8 show an alternative adjustable pedal positionmechanism which eliminates the cable and pulley arrangements of FIGS. 2and 3. Specifically, the adjustable pedal position mechanism of FIGS.7A, 7B and 8 includes geared slides 100, 102 mounted on rollers 104 andmounted within a housing 106. The geared slides 100, 102 are maintainedin position within the housing 106 by guides 108 with a circular gear110 mounted therebetween. The circular gear 110 is non-rotatably coupledto the pedal rod 22 which extends into the housing 106 via an opening107 and, consequently, to the pedal 4 by a pin 112 which rides in slotsor channels 28 a formed in opposed walls of the housing 106. Thecircular gear 110 is held in an engaged position between the gearedslides 100, 102 in which teeth of the circular gear 110 engage teeth ofthe slides 100, 102 by the bias of a spring 114 which abuts a knob 116which extends out of the housing 106. The knob 116 is mounted on the pin112 so that, when the knob 116 is pushed toward the housing 106 againstthe bias of spring 114, the circular gear 110 is moved to a disengagedposition in which the teeth of the circular gear are out of engagementwith the teeth of the slides 100,102.

Thus, by depressing the knob 116, the circular gear 110 and the pedal 4can be slid to any position along the length of housing 106. Uponreleasing the knob 116, the teeth of the circular gear 110 again engagesthe teeth of slides 100, 102 and the pedal 4 is locked in a newposition. Those skilled in the art will understand that, when the pedal4 is depressed, the pedal rod 22 rotates the circular gear 110(clockwise as seen in FIGS. 7A and 7B) which can cause either the slide100 to slide forward (to the left in FIG. 7B) or the slide 102 to sliderearward (to the right in FIG. 7B) depending on which of stops 121 and123 has been removed. In particular, as shown in the appropriateFigures, stop 123 is removed for the cable pull arrangement of FIG. 7A,and stop 121 is removed for the push rod arrangement of FIG. 7B. Thoseskilled in the art will understand that the force applied by the pedal 4to the slides 100, 102 may be applied by the slide 100 to a push rodconnector 118, as in FIG. 7B or by the slide 102 to a pull cable 120, asin FIG. 7A, and that this force may then be transmitted to an actuatorfor a corresponding vehicle control device.

One of removable stops 121, 123 is thus utilized at the respectivecorner 122, 124 to allow either pull cable or push rod control actionselection. For example, removal of stop 121 directs all pedal motion toa forward motion of slide 100 using a rod connector 118 while removal ofstop 123 directs all pedal motion to a rearward motion of slide 102which uses a cable connector 120.

Of course as with the previously described embodiments, those skilled inthe art will understand that, although manual adjustment has beendescribed in regard to the adjustable pedal position mechanism of FIGS.7A, 7B and 8, motorized control would provide similar action and couldbe implemented with similar structure. In addition, those skilled in theart will understand that the present invention is compatible with anyalternative mechanisms for utilizing pedal motion to operate a vehiclecontrol device (e.g., hydraulic systems).

While a separate motor is preferred for the foot pedal track, it couldalso be accomplished by direct connection to the seat drive, such as ina cable shaft drive common to speedometers. While overhead slung pedalsare shown, floor mounted pedals are intended to have similar controls.

Similar seat and distance sensors are suggested for other air bagprotected passengers, to maintain a safe air-bag distance. Thesedistance detectors could be set to halt forward seat movement and issuean audible and/or visible warning when the minimum safe distance isencroached upon.

In addition, those skilled in the art will recognize that braking andaccelerator controls may be further monitored and acted upon by the CPU64 based upon input from the Exterior Distance Sensors 74 in conjunctionwith Speed and Direction Sensors 72. For example, if the Speed andDirection sensors 72 and related Exterior Distance Sensors 74 detectimminent impact, additional braking forces may be activated via brakecontrol 68.

All safety threats detected by the CPU 64 may also be conveyed to thedriver by an audio and/or visual alert system.

Those skilled in the art will understand that the examples of distancessuch as the minimum safe clearance from an air-bag are discussedthroughout this specification, but these distances may vary on acase-by-case basis. In addition, those skilled in the art willunderstand that the above-described embodiments are illustrative onlyand there are many variations and modifications of the disclosedembodiments which will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Thesevariations and modifications are considered to be within the scope ofthe invention which is intended to be limited only by the claimsappended hereto.

What is claimed:
 1. A vehicle safety device comprising: a first air-bagmounted within a passenger compartment of a vehicle; a first seatmounted within the passenger compartment, the first seat being movablyconnected to a frame of the vehicle by a first seat position adjustingmechanism, the first seat position adjusting mechanism allowing thefirst seat to move relative to the first air-bag along a first axisbetween a forward-most position and a rearward-most position, theforward-most position being defined as a position of the first seat inwhich a distance between a passenger seated in the first seat and thefirst air-bag is equal to a minimum safe clearance, displacement of thefirst seat away from the forward-most position increasing the distancebetween the first seat and the first air-bag; wherein the first air-bagis fixedly positioned with respect to one of a steering wheel assemblyfor a driver and a dashboard arrangement for a passenger other than thedriver.
 2. The vehicle safety device according to claim 1, wherein thefirst seat is a driver's seat and wherein the vehicle includes at leastone vehicle control pedal positioned in the passenger compartmentforward of the first seat, the vehicle safety device further comprisinga pedal position adjusting mechanism for moving the at least one pedaltoward and away from the first seat.
 3. The vehicle safety deviceaccording to claim 2, wherein the pedal position adjusting mechanismincludes a pedal mounting member to which the at least one pedal isrotatably mounted, the pedal mounting member being slidably mountedwithin the passenger compartment so that the at least one pedal may beslid along a pedal adjusting axis substantially parallel to the firstaxis between a forward-most position and a rearward-most position. 4.The vehicle safety device according to claim 2, wherein, when in theforward-most position, a seat-back of the first seat is separated fromthe first air-bag by a distance equal to the minimum safe clearance plusa value corresponding to an adult chest depth.
 5. The vehicle safetydevice according to claim 2, wherein the vehicle safety device is foruse with a position defining arrangement for defining the forward-mostposition based on a distance between a passenger seated in the firstseat and the first air-bag, the vehicle safety device further comprisinga distance sensor for determining the distance and for providing thedistance to the position defining arrangement.
 6. The vehicle safetydevice according to claim 2, further comprising: a second seat mountedwithin the passenger compartment, the second seat being movablyconnected to the vehicle frame by a second seat position adjustingmechanism, the second seat position adjusting mechanism allowing thesecond seat to move along a second axis parallel to the first axisbetween a forward-most position and a rearward-most position; and asecond air-bag mounted within the passenger compartment in front of theforward-most position of the second seat, the forward-most position ofthe second seat being defined as a position of the second seat in whicha distance between a passenger seated in the second seat and the secondair-bag is equal to a minimum safe clearance.
 7. The vehicle safetydevice according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of pedals are coupledto the pedal position adjusting mechanism so that, when the position ofthe pedals is adjusted a predetermined positioning of the pedalsrelative to one another is maintained.
 8. The vehicle safety deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the first seat is a driver's seat and thefirst air-bag is mounted in the steering wheel of the vehicle andwherein the vehicle includes at least one vehicle control pedal movablycoupled to a pedal mount, the pedal mount being movably mounted to thevehicle so that the at least one pedal may be moved toward and away fromthe first seat.
 9. The vehicle safety device according to claim 7,further comprising a cable extending from a first end coupled to anactuator of a vehicle control device, around first and second pulleyassemblies to a second end thereof, the second end of the cable beingcoupled to an anchor member, the first pulley assembly including a firstpulley rotatably and movably coupled to the pedal mount and the secondpulley assembly including a second pulley rotatably and non-movablycoupled to the pedal mount.
 10. The vehicle safety device according toclaim 1, wherein the seat position adjusting mechanism includes a leverwhich, in a first position, prevents the first seat from moving forwardand rearward and which, in a second position, releases the first seat sothat the first seat may be moved forward and rearward by a passengerseated in the first seat.
 11. The vehicle safety device according toclaim 1, further comprising: a pedal mount for use with at least onepedal, the pedal mount including: a first geared member and a secondgeared member, one of the first geared member and the second gearedmember being a movable geared member; and a geared wheel non-rotatablycoupled to the at least one pedal, the geared wheel being receivedbetween the first geared member and the second geared member so thatrotation of the geared wheel causes a corresponding motion of themovable geared member; and one of a push rod and a pull cable coupledbetween the movable geared member and an actuator of a vehicle controldevice for use with the at least one pedal.
 12. The vehicle safetydevice according to claim 1, further comprising a height sensor forsensing a position of a portion of a passenger seated in the first seatcorresponding to a height of the eyes of the passenger.
 13. The vehiclesafety device according to claim 1, further comprising a distance sensorsensing a position of a passenger seated in the first seat correspondingto a distance between the passenger and the first air-bag.
 14. Thevehicle safety device according to claim 1, wherein the first air-bag ismounted in the steering wheel of the vehicle.
 15. A vehicle safetydevice comprising: a first seat mounted within a passenger compartmentof the vehicle, the first seat being movably connected to a frame of thevehicle by a first seat position adjusting mechanism, the first seatposition adjusting mechanism allowing the first seat to move along afirst axis between a forward-most position and a rearward-most position;a first air-bag mounted within the passenger compartment in front of theforward-most position of the first seat, the forward-most position beingdefined as a position of the first seat in which a distance between apassenger seated in the first seat and the first air-bag is equal to aminimum safe clearance; a pedal mount; at least one vehicle controlpedal movably coupled to the pedal mount, wherein the pedal mount ismovably mounted to the vehicle so that the at least one vehicle controlpedal may be moved toward and away from the first seat; a cableextending from a first end coupled to an actuator of a vehicle controldevice, around first and second pulley assemblies to a second endthereof, the second end of the cable being coupled to an anchor member,the first pulley assembly including a first pulley rotatably and movablycoupled to the pedal mount and the second pulley assembly including asecond pulley rotatably and non-movably coupled to the pedal mount; andan abutment member coupled to the at least one pedal and abutting thefirst pulley assembly so that, upon actuation of the pedal, the firstpulley moves relative to the pedal mount applying a corresponding forceto the cable to operate the actuator of the vehicle control device;wherein the first seat is a driver's seat and the first air-bag ismounted in a steering wheel of the vehicle.
 16. A method of maintaininga minimum safe clearance between an air-bag mounted in a vehicle and avehicle passenger to be protected by the air-bag, wherein the vehicleincludes a seat which may be moved toward and away from the air-bag, themethod comprising the steps of: limiting motion of the seat toward theair bag to prevent motion of the seat beyond a forward-most positionwherein, when in the forward-most position, a passenger seated in theseat is separated from the air-bag by a predetermined minimum safeclearance; and adjusting a position of at least one vehicle controlpedal to achieve a desired distance between the seat and the at leastone pedal; wherein the air-bag is fixedly positioned with respect to oneof a steering wheel assembly for a driver and a dashboard arrangementfor a passenger other than the driver.